New to Board

[MUNCHKIN815]

Hi I am new to these boards. My Name is Gina and my husband and I are TTC our 1st child. We have been using medications for fertility since 01/2007. We had six cycles of clomid and then got pregnant but lost that baby at 11 weeks. We then tried 2 more cycles of clomid before moving on to Femara. We did 1 cycle of femara under the care of my OBGYN and then were referred to a RE. This is our first cycle of femara at the RE. There is so much more testing and monitoring with the RE, it is a bit overwhelming. I went for my 1st follicle scan CD10 on Saturday and well as an estradiol test. The u/s showed 3 follicles on each side, the biggest only 0.86??? The nurse states that they need to be at least 1.0??? Also she said that my estradiol level was low, 30. She states that they want to see it at 40 or above? This is all new to me anyone with any insight into what all of this means?? I go for another scan on Wed morning in hopes of using ovidrel sometime this week. It has been very encouraging to be able to read about others TTC journeys, It helps me realize that I am not alone in this struggle.
Gina

[Constance_13]

Welcome Gina!!!!

I am so happy you found this board. The ladies here are truly amazing and each and everyone of us had been where you are and know what its like to go through all the craziness of IF. I am so sorry to hear about your loss. Please ask any and all questions and hopefully one or more of the ladies will be able to answer them for you and / or have personal experience with them.

I am currently PG with our first little Femara miracle. We just happened to find the right recipe for us. I LOVE Femara and the found the SE's are not that bad at all.

I am a HUGE advocate for being monitored when taking any kind of IF treatment especially at the level you are on. Everyone’s body reacts so differently to each drug and it’s important to find out how yours is responding so the doctor can make any changes needed. I know seeing an RE is very over whelming but they truly know there field and you are in the best hands possible. OB's can only do so much when it comes to IF and if there are under lying issues then you defiantly need to have an RE doing all the appropriate tests. The reason for the follicle scan is to make sure there are enough or not too many mature follicles. The follicles need to be a specific size before you can trigger or regardless of the meds the CY will be a bust.

It is truly amazing but there are lots of things that go into conception and it truly is a miracle every time it happens. Your body may be able to make healthy follicles and may be able to ovulate but you might have a chemical imbalance that will not allow your body to sustain a PG. So the other blood test I am not 100% sure but they will have a way to help you raise the level to the needed amount. Sorry I am not much help with this part.

Clomid tends to thin your uterine lining and when that happens even when you get PG your body can not maintain the PG Femara on the other hand tends to help thicken the lining which is needed as well as helps stimulate follicle growth.

GOOD LUCK on your journey!!! Sending you lots of Please keep us posted and let us know if we can help in any way.

[mommaphoebs]

Welcome! You're follies were probably smaller because you're scan was only on day 10; if your RE checks again in a few days, they'll likely be a good size. I only had one follie this last cycle, but it was enough to get pg! It took me 12 mos. on Femara though. I did Clomid for a few months before that, and was so pleased the Femara didn't have the s/e! Best wishes!

[MissAvasMommie]

I wanted to take a minute to welcome you to our board. There are lots of supportive ladies here. Check out the info thread at the top of the board. You may find lots of the answers you are searching for there. As for the RE tests, don't sweat not understanding at this point. Once they have completed the full battery of tests, the RE should sit down with you and your DH and explain what each of the results mean to the fertility process - I know mine did. The good thing about a low estradiol result is there are patches that they can have you use that get that number up. I also agree that the follie scan was early and there is still plenty of time for them to get to the optimum size for release. Keep your chin up!

I look forward to getting to know you as you go through this journey.

[nessak]

I agree sometimes it just takes time to get those eggies were they need to be.
Sometimes mine were ready at 12 days past stimming/meds and other times it took 14days. Stay strong, hopefully you will get good results in the next couple of days!
Good luck!

[enigma74]

I knew from previous cycles that I O late and didn't even have an ultrasound until day 12 and my follies were still fairly small. Each person is a unique and beautiful snowflake (so to speak) and therefore the time it takes to get the right size follie(s) can be different for everyone. Don't let this get you down. When do you go for another scan? Two days?

[MUNCHKIN815]

Thank you ladies for giving me such a warm welcome. I had another scan today. There was one large follicle on the right measuring 16. There were a few other smaller ones, does anyone know what happens with those? Are the actually viable eggs or do they just dissolve? Also my estradiol level was 123 today. The nurse called and states that the doctor wants me to use the ovidrel on Friday and then do IUI on Sunday. Is that the normal routine to do IUI 2 days later? This is all so new, AHHHH! Have a blessed day.

[Constance_13]

VERY EXCITING

That is great news. The smaller follicles may still grow but most likely they will just re-absorbed...if they are too small or not viable that’s what generally happens. AND all you need is one GREAT eggie

That is very standard with the Ovidrel shot. IUI put your DH's little soldiers in the right place off the top unlike BD’ing where they have to fight there way up to the tub so you do not need as much time. Most ppl ovulate 24 to 36 hours after the trigger so it’s important to do your IUI in correlation with when you should be O'ing. I wish you all the best!!!!

GOOD LUCK...sending lots of

[Loopy Lou]

Hi Gina and Welcome!
Sorry for my late post...I too see an RE in Orlando area....Regarding your first post i just wanted say that this is my 7th month of trying with meds and my follies too take a while to grow, so firstly do not worry about your first set of numbers...But i am a little confused about the numbers your nurse was saying she wanted to see....From my experience they usually want to see at least 16mm + to consider ovidrel, unless the 1.0 was another version of measurement, and also to help you understand the Estradial, they like too see at least 100 per mature follicle, (so i was unsure about the 40 she said)...So that is wonderful that you had 123...Great numbers and the Ovidrel will help the follies mature even more and release...I'd say everything looks great! I just wanted to give you a little insight into the numbers, as it can all be all quite overwhelming, and ask lots of questions to your nurses and RE....And of course here with us...Is this your first IUI?

Good Luck Gina!!! KUP